Machine for coating cans



pril 19, 1932. R* BECHT 1,854,245

MACHINE FOR COATING CANS Filed Jne ll, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet l Ill April 19, 1932. R. BECHT 1,854,245

' MACHINE FOR comme cANs Fild June 11, 1928 4 sheets-sheet 2 ATTORNEYS April 19, 1932. R. BECHT 1,854,245'

MACHINE FOR COATING CANS INVENTO'R.

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y www ATToRNEY` April 19, .1932. R. BECHT MACHINE FOR COATING cANs Filed June 11, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 A Tlorn eys.

Patented Apr. 19, 1932 UNITED STATES.

' j ROBERT BECHT, OF CINCINNATI, OI-IIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE ROBERT BECI-IT COMPANY, 0F

A CORPORATION OF OHIO CINCINNATI, OHIO,

PATENT OFFICE MACHINE Fon ooA'rINs cANs Application filed June 11, 1928. Serial No. 284,350.

My invention rela-tes to a machine for coating cans either prior or subsequent to the attachment of the can labels.

In the can industry there is always avery great loss due to the rusting of cans which are exposed to moisture, and while the rust.- ing of the cans does not necessarily ruin the products within the cans, it mars their ,appearance and sometimes leads to deterioration of the contents by seams of the can bodies or lids. Furthermore, often can'seams are subject to someslight leakage, and if the package is not entirely leak-proof rapid deterioration will set in. l

It is the object of my invention to provide a can coating machine which will thoroughly and completely cover and coat the can so that not only is the package improved in appearance, particularly when an unglazed wrapper has been applied thereto, but an auxiliary seal is applied which will tendto make the can substantially rust and leak proof.

It is further my object to provide a machine with mechanism for automatically delivering and taking away cans from the coating machine so that the us-e of hand labor in controlling the coating of the cans will be reduced very materially.

The above and other sundry purposes and yobjects to which more specific reference will be made in the following description I accomplish by that certain combination and relation of parts of which I have illustrated a preferred embodiment.

Referring to the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of the coating portion of the machine with the take-off mechanism not shown for purposes of clearness.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the machine showing the take-off mechanism approximately in position for picking up a can.

Figure 3 is an end elevation of the machine from the take-olf end.

Figure tV is a detail view of the can blocking mechanism associated with the supply conveyor.

Figure 5 is a section through the take-off arm taken along the line 5-5 in Figure 2.

rusting through theV vthe sprockets 23 and 24.

the greater rate Figure 6 is a perspective view of the can feedingv mechanism detached from the rest of the machine. Y

T he machine is mounted on a frame indicated at 1 and Vis driven preferably by an electric motor 2. rI he coating mechanism is formed by a large, preferably metal roll or cylinder 3, which has a segmentaryportion at its lower end emersed in a pan 11 which may besupplied with varnish or other coating medium from any desirable source. The roll 3 is mounted on a shaft 5 and suitably journaled in the machine frame. The shaft 5 has a gear 6 rigidly attached theretov which meshes with a pinion 7. The pinion is mounted on a shaft 8 on which a large gear 9 is mounted. The gear 9 meshes with a pinion 10 mounted on a shaft 11 which carries a sprocket 12 which is driven by a chain 13 from a driving sprocket 111 mountedon the motor shaft. Y i

Mounted on the shaft 8 is a driving sprocket 15 for rotating the rolls which assist in the coating operation. Preferably two v,spaced soft rubber rolls 16, 17 are used which y*are journaled in bearings 18, 19 which are slidable in bearing blocks threaded openings in which extend the adjustment screw 22. The turning of the adjustment screw regulates the spaced position of the bearing blocks andv consequently the spaced distance between the rolls 16, 17 Y. .The roll 20 has a sprocket 23 which has a greater number of teeth on it than the sprocket drive 24 for the other roll. A continuous chain 25 passing over the driving sprocket 15 drives An idler arm 26 is attached to the machine frame and `an idler gear 27 provides means for taking up slack in the chain 25. Y

It will be noted that as shown in Figure 1, the vrubber roll 17 is driven by the smaller sprocket so thatit travels at a greater rate of speed than the complementary roll. The sprocket 15 rotates in a counterclockwise direction so that both the rolls 16 and 17 turn counterclockwise. The roll 17, travelingV at of speed than the complementary roll 16, when a can is deposited between the rolls feedsthe can down so thatjit l 20, 21 through peripherally engages the large roll 3. It would be apparent that should the roll 16 rotate at a. greater speed than the roll 17, then the can would be ejected instead of carried into coating position.

Combined with the coating machine we have provided means for automatically feeding cans, one at a time, and taking them away from the coating rollers. The can feeding mechanism is shown disassociated with the coating mechanism in Figure 6. It is composed of frame members 28 having shafts 29, 30 journaled in the frame. The lower shaft 29 carries a sprocket 3l and the upper shaft carries a sprocket 32. A chain 33, having spaced carrying lingers 34 passes about the sprockets, and as the cans are fed along the conveyor indicated at 35, they will be picked up, one by one, and elevated to the delivery chut-e 36. A rocking bracket generally indicated at 37 is pivoted in the frame 28. The bracket has a bar 38 at one end which blocks the movement of the cans down the chute. The other end of the bracket has a bar 39 which is engaged by spaced cams or lugs 40 extending from the periphery ofthe shaft 30. Vith each rotation of the shaft the blocking bracket is tripped twice. Supposing the sprocket 32 has twenty teeth on it. If then, there are ten links between each carrying fmger with each revolution of the sprocket two cans would be delivered and two cans would be allowed to fall from the end of the chute.

The feeding conveyor has a sprocket 4l on the shaft 29 which is driven by a chain 41a from a sprocket 42 on the shaft 47. By properly setting the sprocket 42 on the shaft 47 the cans will be fed to the machine in proper sequence, and if, during the interval between the feeding of one can and the next successive one, take-off mechanism removes the coated can from the coating rollers, then the operation of the machine will be continuous.

For taking olf cans from the machine I have provided a frame with curved arms 43 pivotally mounted in journals as indicated in Figure 2 at 43a. A sprocket 44 mounted on the sha-ft 11 provides the driving power for rocking the pick up frame. The chain 45 extends from the sprocket 44 to a large sprocket 46 mounted on a shaft 47. A crank arm 48 pivotally connected to the end 49 of the arms 43 induces a movement of the pick up frame from can receiving position such as is indicated in solid lines at 50 to the delivering position indicated in dotted lines at 5l. Cam tracks 52 are set on each side of the frame to control the position of plungers 53 which have ends 54 which move together inwardly so as to extend beyond the flange o'f the can top and bottom so that when the U-shaped bracket is rocked back to delivering position the can will be withdrawn from the coating rollers. The plungers 53 have inclined ro-llers 55 which engage the cam tracks and control thereby the distance apart of the ends 54 of the respective oppositcly mounted plungers. The plungers have ii-shaped grooves 56 into which balls 57 are pressed as with springs 58 so that when the pistons have been advanced to position to engage the flanges of the can top and bottom they will automatically remain in this position. The pistons also have lf-shaped grooves 59 which hold the ends 54 together when the mechanism is moving' into position to pick up a can. It will be obvious that it is j ust as important to keep the pick up ends apart while the mechanism is moving into position to pick up a can as it is to keep them together when they are carrying a can from the machine.

After the can is picked up and the arms 43 rock back to the position indicated in dotted lines in Figure 2, another set of cam tracks indicated at 60 which may-be supported on brackets 6l, cause the pistons to move apart so that the can is dropped into another conveyor (not shown) which delivers the coated cans to the drying ovens.

In order to provide a simple way for timing the take-off mechanism with the delivering mechanism, a clutch 62, which will slip under any blockage of the pick up mecha.- nism, is mounted on the shaft 47 which may be thrown in at any desired interval. If, for

example, the timing is such that the pick up bracket moves into position to pick up the can before the can is thoroughly coated, the clutch can be allowed to slip for a moment and then be thrown in again at a later interval.

The varnish pan may be mounted on a rack 63 which engages the gear 64 which is held in position by the pawl 65. As the supply in the tank diminishes the tank .may be elevated. A more important advantage of this construction is, however, that it enables the varnish pan to be readily removed so that the coating roller may be easily cleaned off.

The operation of the mach-ine will be apparent as to the feeding and take-off mechanism. The coating operation, however, is of considerably more importance, and due to the manner in which the rolls are driven and their rate of speed, the effectiveness of the distribution of the coating on the can will be determined.

I have found that the roller which draws the can down into position must move faster than the roller which does most of the coating of the can. Thus, referring to the diagrammatic view of the coating rollers in Figure 4, the roller 3 carries up the coating naterial to be coated on the can from the pan. The most rapidly moving roller keeps Vthe can down in the coating opening rotating it at approximately the same rate of speed at which it is rotating, and the more slowly moving roller movin()r at a shhtl lower rate than the can, spreads out the coating on the can walls in a uniform lilm. The brushes at the ends pick up the coating from the roller and evenly distribute it over the ends of the can, thereby enabling the machine to coat the oan so that it will be substantially rustroo Modifications in the particular shape and size of parts will readily occur to those skilled in the art, but insofar as machines are constructed which are operable on the same mechanical principle, I consider them within the scope of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A machine for coating` cans comprising a large coating distributing roller and spaced resilient rollers so journaled wit-h relation to said coating roller as to provide an opening for retaining a can to be coated therebetween, means for rotating said rollers, said rollers being adapted to apply a coating to the entire periphery of a can, and means for simultaneously coating the end of a can, said last named means comprising a rotary brush.

2. A machine for coating cans comprising a large coating distributing roller and spaced resilient rollers so ournaled with relation to said coating roller as to provide an opening for retaining a can to be coated therebetween, means for rotating said rollers, said rollers adapted to apply a coating tothe periphery of a can, and means for simultaneously coating the end of a can, said means being in contact with said distributing roller whereby a supply of coating is provided.

3. A machine for coating cans comprising a large coating distributing roller and spaced resilient rollers so ournaled with relation to said coating roller as to provide an opening for retaining a can to be coated therebetween, means for rotating said rollers, said rollers adapted to apply a coating to the periphery of a can, and means for coating the end of a can, said last named means comprising a rotary brush, said brush disposed in contact With said coating distributing roller whereby a constantly renewed supply of coating is y delivered to said brush.

4. In combination with means for feeding cans in sequence and means for taking away said cans, coating mechanism for cans comprising a coating distributing roller and rollers composed of resilient material arranged in contact with said distributing roller but adjustably spaced each from the other, and means for rotating said spaced rollers at different peripheral speed-s, said coating mechanism also comprising means for coating the ends of cans comprising rotary brushes peripherally engaging said distributing roller.

5. A machine for coating the side walls of cans comprising a coating distributing roller having a segment thereof disposed in a supand means for distributing coating from said distributing roller to the ends of a can in coating position in said machine.

6. In a can coating machine a plurality of resilient coating rollers, means for feeding cans to said rollers, a plurality of arms for removing cans from said rollers and an operating mechanism for controlling the feed of cans to said rollers, rotating the rollers to coat the cans and operating said arms to remove the cans.

ROBERT RECHT. 

